Occupation: CEO of Merteuil Industries

Parents: Charles and Ann Merteuil

Children: Sierra Merteuil

Relationships: Nathan Blackthorne, Kenny DeWitt, Jordan Rydell, T.T. Levitt

Other Appearances: Seasons 1 – 6

Who’d Play Her: Sheryl Lee Ralph

The Woman Behind the Secrets: Renee inherited her late father’s multi-national conglomerate, Merteuil Industries. Her mother was a popular singer in the seventies.

As a young woman years before, Renee had become involved with legendary actor Nathan Blackthorne. She discovered she was pregnant shortly before Nathan fled the country to escape charges of rape and sexual abuse. Horrified by the scandal and determined to protect her child from Nathan’s name, Renee secretly gave birth to a daughter, Sierra, in Europe. She then legally adopted her own child and allowed everyone—including Sierra—to believe that the girl’s biological parents had died in a car accident. Renee kept Sierra overseas in boarding schools, convinced that distance and secrecy were the only ways to keep her safe.

Renee’s marriage to Kenny DeWitt eventually collapsed because of his repeated infidelities. Shortly after their divorce, Sierra unexpectedly returned from Europe, forcing Renee to explain the existence of the daughter she had hidden throughout her marriage. Kenny was furious over the deception, while Renee began a relationship with powerful producer Jordan Rydell. Their romance was undermined by Jordan’s lingering attachment to Alex Reynolds and Renee’s growing terror that Nathan’s return to Hollywood would expose Sierra’s identity.

The truth began to unravel after a drunken Ethan Blackthorne struck Sierra with his car. At the hospital, Sierra needed an emergency blood transfusion, and Renee was discovered to share her supposedly adopted daughter’s rare blood type. Cornered, Renee finally admitted to Jordan that Sierra was her biological child and that Nathan was her father. Renee’s worst fears were realized when Nathan learned the truth and began drawing Sierra into his orbit.

Renee desperately tried to keep them apart without revealing the full extent of Nathan’s depravity. Her efforts were complicated by Alex, whose rivalry with Renee led her to expose part of Sierra’s parentage. Hurt and confused, Sierra turned to Nathan for comfort without knowing he was her father. Renee, Alex, and Jordan eventually found them aboard Victor Distefano’s yacht, where Nathan was preparing to force himself on Sierra despite already knowing the truth. Renee revealed their relationship, leaving Sierra horrified and destroying any illusion that Nathan possessed a conscience.

Nathan later cornered Sierra in Renee’s hotel room, prompting the terrified young woman to stab him with a letter opener. Alex took responsibility for the attack to protect her, while Renee struggled to help Sierra recover from the devastating truth about her father. Although the revelation fractured their relationship, it also freed Renee from the lie she had spent decades maintaining.

Renee later reconciled with Kenny, but rebuilding their marriage proved difficult. The near loss of Merteuil Industries brought them closer after Jacqueline Lamont blackmailed a shareholder into surrendering enough stock to seize control of the company. Renee was forced to watch as the business that represented her independence and authority slipped from her grasp, while Kenny’s continued betrayals threatened to destroy the trust they were attempting to restore.

Renee’s life was further complicated by the return of T.T. Levitt, the sophisticated head of Titan Records. More than twenty years earlier, Renee and T.T. had shared an intense two-week romance aboard a Mediterranean cruise. Renee ended the relationship after discovering that T.T. had been engaged the entire time. When they reunited in Los Angeles, he immediately began pursuing her again, but Renee resisted, unwilling to be deceived twice. Their connection became even more complicated when they learned that T.T.’s son, Malcolm, was involved with Sierra. Although Renee eventually agreed to see T.T., his lingering relationship with Angela Warner convinced her that he had not changed. T.T. nevertheless professed his love for Renee and continued trying to win her back.

Renee’s efforts to protect Sierra also drew her into the increasingly destructive relationship between her daughter and Benji Rydell. She warned Sierra about Benji’s violence, manipulation, and criminal behavior, but Sierra remained drawn to him and eventually married him in Las Vegas. Renee and Jordan tried desperately to separate their children, while Renee even pressured Benji to punish one of the men responsible for getting Sierra involved with drugs. Her determination to defend Sierra sometimes led her to encourage the same darkness in Benji that she feared would ultimately destroy her daughter.

Renee’s worst fears were realized when Benji’s obsession with Sierra turned deadly. After their volatile relationship finally collapsed, a distraught Benji shot and killed Sierra. The shocking incident left Renee consumed by grief and anger. Benji died soon afterward while fleeing the police, depriving Renee of the chance to confront the man who had murdered her daughter. The loss stripped away much of the composure on which Renee had built her life and became the tragedy against which every later relationship and ambition would be measured.